Spanish Wine

Question 1

Castilla y Leon

Where is it? And what are most popular appellations, styles, grapes?

Answer 1

Northwest Spain - continental

Ribera del Duero is most famous - Tempranillo oak aged

Bierzo - Mencia grapes and also Tempranillo

Several crisp whites

Question 2

What are the most common red styles from our shop’s producer Finca Torremilanos? Where are they?

Answer 2

Tempranillo, Castilla y Leon

Question 3

What are the names for levels of aged and time spent in oak in Spain?

Answer 3

Joven
Crianza
Reserva
Gran Reserva

Question 5

What are Spain’s main wine classifications?

Answer 5

Vino de Mesa (Table Wine),
Vino de la Tierra (VT)

Denominación de Origen (DO)
Denominación de Origen Calificada (DOCa)

Question 6

What are the two DOCa regions in Spain?

Answer 6

Rioja and Priorat

Question 7

What is Spain’s most planted red grape?

Answer 7

Tempranillo

Question 8

What are the aging classifications for Spanish wine?

Answer 8

Joven (young), Crianza, Reserva, Gran Reserva

Question 9

What are the typical flavors of Rioja red wines?

Answer 9

Red cherry, dried fruit, vanilla, tobacco, leather (more pronounced with aging)

Question 10

What red grape dominates Ribera del Duero?

Answer 10

Tempranillo (locally called Tinto Fino or Tinta del País)

Question 11

How does Ribera del Duero compare to Rioja?

Answer 11

Ribera is more powerful and full-bodied, with darker fruit and firmer tannins

Question 12

What is the main red grape of Priorat?

Answer 12

Garnacha, often blended with Cariñena, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah

Question 13

What flavors are typical of Priorat wines?

Answer 13

Rich, intense black fruit, licorice, spice, and mineral notes from slate soils (Llicorella)

Question 14

What red grape is famous in Bierzo in Castilla y Leon?

Answer 14

Mencía (producing fresh, floral, medium-bodied reds)

Question 15

What is Spain’s most important white grape?

Answer 15

Albariño (mainly from Rías Baixas, Galicia)

Question 16

What are the main characteristics of Albariño?

Answer 16

Crisp, high acidity, flavors of citrus, green apple, peach, and saline minerality

Question 17

What white grape is dominant in Rueda DO?

Answer 17

Verdejo

Question 18

What are the typical flavors of Verdejo?

Answer 18

Green apple, citrus, herbal, and nutty notes when aged

Question 19

What white grape is grown in Rioja?

Answer 19

Viura (also called Macabeo)

Question 20

What is Spain’s main sparkling wine?

Answer 20

Cava

Question 21

What are the typical flavors of Cava?

Answer 21

Crisp apple, pear, citrus, with nutty and toasty notes from aging

Question 22

What is Spain’s best-known rosé-producing region?

Answer 22

Navarra (rosés made mostly from Garnacha)

Question 23

What are the main styles of Sherry?

Answer 23

Fino (dry, light, salty), Amontillado (nutty, oxidative), Oloroso (rich, full-bodied), Pedro Ximénez (PX) (very sweet, raisiny)

Question 24

What does “Vino de Pago” mean?

Answer 24

A prestigious single-estate wine designation, higher than DO/DOCa

Question 25

What is the dominant grape in Montsant?

Answer 25

Garnacha and Cariñena, similar to Priorat but more affordable

Question 26

What is Spain’s signature dessert wine?

Answer 26

Pedro Ximénez (PX) Sherry, very sweet and rich, with dried fruit and caramel flavors